Dublin seeks to protect Hungry Tree

Dublin city councillors have called for the protection of the so-called Hungry Tree, a London Plane which over the decades has gradually been "swallowing" a cast-iron bench on Constitution Hill in the north inner city.

Located on the grounds of King's Inns, the institution which controls the entry of barristers into the Irish legal system, the 80-year-old tree is one of the capital's more unusual landmarks.

Dublin councillors representing the city centre have passed a motion seeking a preservation order for the tree and calling for the bench to be designated a protected structure.